Are New Skechers Sneakers Sexist?

Skechers is known for pushing the envelope with their products (remember Shape-ups for girls?) but they may have ripped the envelope wide open with this one.

Daddy’$ Money (no, that's not a typo) is a new line of “ultra cool shoes that will put you in the spotlight.” The campaign for these high-top sneakers advises tweens and teens to “get spoiled with Daddy's money.” Because you know, men are the only ones who make money. And being spoiled is something to shoot for. Why is college necessary again?

“The product name implies that women and girls need to rely on a father figure to buy them things,” says Caroline Knorr, parenting editor at Common Sense Media. “It targets its message to a view of women that underestimates intelligence, a work ethic, and even self-esteem. It’s insulting.”

But that’s not the only thing iffy about these kicks. With a design that features hidden wedges to make girls taller, these shoes also send the message that heels for gym class are just fine.

If your kid sees these ads, which are running on channels kids watch, how can you combat the message? “Ads like this can be teaching tools for the kinds of values you want to raise your kid with,” says Knorr. “If kids see this ad, I would encourage parents to discuss it and point out the messages it seems to be sending and see what kids’ reactions are. What’s appealing about the ad? Who is the ad targeting? Can you imagine an ad like this for boys? What would that look like? This would be a great jumping-off point for a talk about stereotypes.”